A Family Force 5 Spring Break
by RayBanCoolness
Summary: During what seemed to be a normal vacation, the members of Family Force 5 meet their most influential fan yet. Written for Olivia StopLivi.
1. Chapter 1

It was a beautiful day in Miami, Florida. The sun was shining, birds were singing, and a red and black bus was tearing down the street at breakneck speed.

Pedestrians could only stare in awe as the vehicle screeched around turns. A police car followed closely behind.

Inside the bus, a group of people was huddled near the front. One man steered frantically while the others yelled at him.

"JACOB! Slow DOWN!" one of them cried. "We got the po-po on our tail now, thanks to you!"

"I'm sorry, Soli!" Jacob said. "I'm panicking here!"

"Well pull over!" he yelled back.

"I'm too scared," Jacob whispered, tears forming in his eyes.

Before Solomon could yell at his younger brother again, a man with blonde hair stepped in. He always knew how to deal more effectively with people. "Jacob, the longer you run away from your fears, the worse things are going to get," he said gently.

Jacob nodded. Derek was right. He flicked on his turn signal and slammed on the brakes. The police car glided smoothly to a stop behind them.

The man in the passenger seat finally removed his tattooed hands from his eyes. "Are we dead?" he asked.

"No, Nathan, we're not," Solomon said, glaring at Jacob, "but we will be as soon as that officer gets up here!"

"What did I do?" Jacob asked innocently.

Solomon just turned and stormed off. Derek shook his head and placed a hand on Jacob's shoulder. "The officer just wanted to give us a warning about speeding here, no reason to freak out. Honestly, now I have no idea what will happen, since we technically tried to outrun a cop—"

As Jacob began to silently cry, Derek changed his tone. "—But it's okay! We're here, the weather's great, and everyone's safe."

The officer banged on Jacob's window. He slowly rolled it down and looked up at the cop with big, sad eyes.

"ID and registration, please."

Just then, Jacob's twin brother Josh came up. "What's going on? I heard a lot of—" He stopped short when he saw the officer at the window. "Jacob…what did you do?"

"I didn't mean to!" Jacob wailed, as he gave in to loud sobs. The cop's face softened a little. The silence, broken by the sound of Jake crying, was awkward.

"Well, I guess I'll just send you on your way, then," the officer said. "Have a nice day."

Jacob stopped crying and all four men just stared out the window in shock. The officer tipped his hat and walked off.

Solomon came back up front. "I just saw the copper leave. What's the damage?"

"Nothing," Derek said. "He—he let us go."

"What? No way!" Sol exclaimed. "Alright, we gotta get back to business. Our hotel reservation is for 4, so let's skedaddle. And, uh, I'll be driving the rest of the way."

…

Finally! The boys made it to the beautiful coast of Miami. They unloaded their gear in the suite they had rented and headed to the ocean.

Jacob was obviously feeling a bit better when he made a joke about Miami being "beachy keen."

"I love it here!" Sol said, also in a better mood. "The sun…the sand…the girls…"

"Dude, you're married," Josh pointed out.

"Don't mean I can't appreciate other females," he said, winking.

Josh rolled his eyes and walked off. He liked being alone, so he headed down the beach by himself.

Jacob had his pants rolled up and was splashing in the water. Derek was building a sand castle with Nate, and Solomon had found a lady companion to talk to. Josh chuckled and stuck his hands in his pockets. Seagulls flew off when he neared them. The waves lapped at his feet. The sun was about to set. It was beautiful.

BAM! Before he could think, he had knocked someone over. His face flushed red as he tried to help them up. "I'm so sorry! Are you okay?"

"Yeah…I think I'm—" The girl's voice trailed off as she looked up into his face. "Ohhh…you…you're…ohhh…"

"I'm what? An idiot? Yeah. I'm sorry."

The girl stood up, never taking her eyes off of him. "No, I mean…you…you're that guy!"

"Uh, yeah, I guess I am…" Josh said, obviously confused.

"Sorry! I mean you're Josh! From Family Force 5!" the girl said breathlessly.

"Oh! Yeah, that's me. I take it you're a fan?"

"A huge one! You're amazing. My name's Olivia, nice to meet you," she said as she smiled and extended her hand.

"You too," he said, shaking her hand with his larger one. "So, what brings you to Miami?"

"Spring break, of course!" Olivia said, smiling even wider. "Me and my friend Lauren drove down here to relax. Who knew I'd bump into you?"

"Not me," Josh said, laughing. "Well, have a good one. Sorry again for just about running you over."

"It's fine! Really! I'm glad you did, actually, otherwise I might not have met you here!"

"Haha okay. See ya."

Josh walked off as Olivia watched him leave. She had been really cool about the whole incident. Most girls he accidentally hit would get super angry at him. But not her. She was cool. Really cool. She was—wait! What was he doing? He just left her in the dust! What, is he crazy?

He came to his senses and jogged back over to her. "I am such a log," he said. "Would you like to come meet the rest of the band?"

Olivia had to keep from screaming. "I'd love to! Oh wait…is it okay if we put a rain check on that? How about you guys come over to our hotel patio tonight for a barbeque? I'm sure Lauren would love to see you guys too."

"I'm sure that'd be fine, I'll check with the others," Josh agreed.

"Great! Cool! See you then, I guess," Olivia said happily.

"Cool," Josh smiled.

As Josh Olds walked away from her for the second time that day, Olivia sighed. "Ohhh, wait till I tell Lauren," she said to herself as she headed towards her hotel.


	2. Chapter 2

It was 5 PM, prime time for parties in the sunset. And oh, what a party was held at the hotel. Non-alcoholic drinks were passed around, island-themed music was playing softly in the background, and—

"Sol, could you PLEASE get off your iPhone?" Nathan complained. "You're ruining the mood."

"What…mood…?" Solomon asked, typing mindlessly on the touch screen.

"We're trapped on a desert island. The only communication we have is smoke signals, and cell phones do not send up smoke signals. The natives on this island appear to be—"

"NATHAN. Just stop right there," Sol interrupted, tapping on the Tweet button. "We are at a barbeque in Miami, not an island."

Nathan folded his arms. "Exactly. We're at a barbeque. It's rude to keep tweeting or texting or whatever you're doing."

"Actually, I'm sending up smoke signals," Solomon smirked as he flashed the screen to Nate. "New app, only cost me $0.99."

Nate rolled his eyes and sipped his fruity drink. Across the patio, Lauren and Olivia were simultaneously talking to Derek. "I bet it gets crazy being on the road with the same people all the time," Olivia stated.

"Well, it can be a bit trying at times, but we really do care about each other, and we do our best to help each other out," he answered.

"Awwwwwwwwww!" Lauren shrieked. The other two just stared at her. "What? Derek's always so nice, it's so cute!"

Derek chuckled. "Well, thank you. But really, these guys are the greatest. Such silly, fun people. Every day is a new adventure we all get to have."

"And I like the way you use grandma words," Lauren interjected.

Olivia fell over laughing as Derek struggled to find words. "Grandma words…that's a new one."

"I mean, like, you use the nice versions of words. Like when you were telling the story about how that lady at Warped busted in on you in the port-a-potty…you chose your words very carefully. You even said you didn't want to be lewd, and Jacob just bluntly said you were taking a dump…not grandma-ish at all!"

"I heard my name," the drummer said as he walked over and sat down. "And the word 'dump'."

Olivia laughed again as Lauren blushed violently. "I was just quoting you from an interview," she explained.

"Yep, dat sounds like me," Jacob said.

"I can't even balee dis!" Lauren yelled and laughed, looking side to side to see people's reactions.

Olivia put her face in her hands. She knew Lauren was a huge FF5 fan, but she was acting like a 12-year-old Belieber around these guys. Maybe she should've just gone with Josh when he asked her to…

"Hey," a voice said next to her, making her jump. She turned and saw Josh grinning at her.

"Oh, hey there," she said.

"Enjoying yourself?"

Olivia glanced over at Lauren, still over-laughing at Jacob like an idiot. "As much as I can," she chuckled.

Josh shook his head and leaned closer. Olivia's breath caught. "Want to move somewhere a little quieter?" he asked.

"Sure," she managed to get out. She began staring at his hands. They were so…amazing. That was the only word that could describe them.

The two of them walked off a little ways, onto the actual beach. The sky was purple and red, and the waves lapped gently at their feet. It was a perfect scene.

"So," Josh said, breaking the silence.

"So."

"So…how are you doing?"

Olivia could tell Josh was feeling a bit nervous. But there must be a reason he brought her out here alone. "I'm doing great, what about you?"

"Fine. Just fine. Listen…back in Atlanta, there was this—"

"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY GUYS!"

Josh sighed as his oldest brother came running up to them. "Y'all are missing the PARTAY!" Solomon shouted. "C'mon Josh, we need you! Oh. Hey," he said, acknowledging Olivia. "Let's go, man!"

Joshua shot Olivia an apologetic look as he was dragged back towards the hotel. She followed, pretending not to be disappointed.

Once they made it back to the patio, things were both quieting down and heating up. The chatting had ceased, but the other three band members were poised around a fire, clutching acoustic instruments. The light from the flames flickered off of Lauren's face, making her intense gaze toward Jacob look even more dramatic. Olivia couldn't help but be amused by her friend's fierce passion for him.

Solomon shoved Josh into a plastic chair and handed him his bass. "We g'on rock this out, alright?" he said with extra swagger in his voice.

Josh shrugged. "Sure. Whatever the heck it is we're doing."

"Soli wants us to play 'Mamacita'," Jake explained. "He wants to spice it up a little out here."

Lauren giggled. Solomon turned and winked at her. "Alright, one, two, three, four!" he counted off.

The boys began plucking their guitar strings as Sol started singing. Olivia swayed with the beat, never taking her eyes off of Josh. She and Lauren even sang along with the chorus.

Once it got to the bridge, Jacob began his vocal riff. "She drop it low, ai yi yi."

Lauren got up and began to follow the instructions in the lyrics. "Just make her shake," Jacob sang. Lauren grabbed Olivia's hands and pulled her out of her seat. The two of them began twirling around, shaking their hips like never before. Once the bridge ended, Olivia sat down quickly, surprised at herself. She was not the type of person to flaunt herself like that.

But even as she was turning red, she caught a glimpse of Josh staring right at her. He was smiling bigger than she had ever seen him.

Maybe immature, over-the-top fangirl Lauren was on to something after all.


	3. Chapter 3

"Wow. That was some party."

Lauren stretched out on the hotel bed as she took her jacket off. She was still grinning from the barbeque. She looked over at Olivia, who was already lying down on her own bed. "Olivia?"

"What? Sorry, I wasn't paying attention."

"I said that was some party."

Olivia rolled over to face Lauren across the room. "It sure was."

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

Lauren smiled wider. "You just…you look like you have stars dancing in your eyes."

Olivia broke into a smile as well. "He's just…I mean…you know?"

"Oh yes. I understand how you feel. He's different, isn't he?"

"Yes. Yes, exactly. He looks like a bit of a brute at first glance, to be honest, but he's so sweet and gentle…and shy…and he cares about others…you just have to get to know his personality."

"Well, I'm glad you're actually getting a chance to know him," Lauren said, pulling a blanket over herself. "And I can't say I'm too unhappy with hanging out with Jacob, either."

Olivia snort-laughed. "What?" Lauren asked.

"Nothing. Goodnight."

Lauren murmured goodnight back and closed her eyes. Olivia stared at the ceiling, thinking. Lauren was right, on some points. Josh was different. But as far as she could tell, Lauren's "love" for the drummer only went so far. It was a shallower type of love. But this…this was deeper.

With thoughts still whizzing through her mind, Olivia drifted off into peaceful sleep.

That night, she dreamt that Josh threw pebbles at her window until she ran out into his arms.

…

Olivia awoke to a deep voice and someone violently shaking her. She squinted in the morning light and yelled, "Wait, Josh, no! I'm not dressed!"

"Josh? What are you talking about?"

Whoops. It was Lauren who had been shaking her. She didn't say his name out loud, did she…? Yes. Yes she did.

"Never mind, I'm up, I'm up." She kicked off the covers and changed out of her pajamas. "What's on the itinerary for today?"

Lauren smiled. "Stalking."

"No, you've gotta be kidding me," Olivia whined. "Please get over yourself. HE'S JUST A MAN."

"AND SO IS HIS TWIIIIIIIIIIIIIIN," Lauren retorted. That shut Olivia right up. "And besides," Lauren continued, "they're going sightseeing today. So I figured today was a good day to go sightseeing. Aha."

Olivia opened a bottle of water and nodded. "Alright, fine. Just don't act too crazy."

"Pssh. Please, girl, when have I ever?"

Ignoring the obvious answer, Olivia put her shoes on and grabbed her jacket. The two girls got some protein bars for "breakfast," and headed out of the hotel.

They chit-chatted all the way down the boardwalk, when Olivia stopped and pointed. "Look! Oh my gosh, look!"

"What? What?" Lauren looked in the direction she was pointing, but couldn't see anything of interest.

"Danielle! Over there!"

"FOR REAL?"

"Let's go say hi!"

They jogged over to the hot dog stand Danielle was standing at, and stood awkwardly in line behind her while she ordered her food. After receiving her order, she sat down at an umbrella-covered table. Olivia poked Lauren.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"Go say something to her."

"Me? You're the one who saw her in the first place!"

"Well she knows you better!"

"She doesn't know me at all!"

"Yuh-huh! Tania's told her about you!"

"Well, yeah, but she probably told her about you too! Hello, the Charlotte show?"

"WHO CARES JUST GO DO IT!"

"FINE!"

Lauren meekly walked up to Danielle's table and waved to get her attention. "Hey, Danielle! I don't know if you remember me, but I'm Lauren. I, uh, I didn't really MEET you meet you at Awakening, but I saw you…and…uh, at It's All Gold in Vienna, I talked to you about karaoke, and Tania…so…hey."

Danielle looked confused. "Oh, and this is Olivia, from the IAG Charlotte stop."

"Oh hey, Olivia! I remember you, how're you doing, girl?" Danielle stood up and gave Olivia a hug. Lauren stood by and watched.

"I'm doing great, how are you?"

"Fantastic! I love Miami, it's so beautiful."

"It really is."

"AHEM."

The two stopped talking and looked at Lauren. "Uh, yeah, so…where's the rest of the crew?" she asked.

"Oh, you mean the boys?" They're up at that shell museum."

"Greatthanksbye," Lauren said in a rush, grabbing Olivia's hand and pulling her away.

"Uh, bye, Danielle!" Olivia turned and called back. "Lemme guess: we're headed to the shell museum?"

"You know it," Lauren answered. "Pick up the pace, Olivia! What's wrong with you?"

They laughed at the Really Real Show reference as they ran up to the museum. The entrance was free, so they went right in with no problem. Not even stopping to look at the displays, they wove through the long hallways and past the tourists admiring the sealife.

"There! I see Nathan!" Lauren fiercely whispered. Olivia started grinning. "Okay, okay! Act casual!"

The two girls began to walk, quietly "discussing" the conch shells next to them. Derek happened to glance over in their direction, and his face lit up. "Hey! What're you guys doing here?"

"Oh, HEY, guys! Didn't know we'd run into y'all here!" Lauren said, covering for them just a bit too much (as usual).

Solomon, Jacob, and Nathan turned and said hello as well. As Lauren began her giggling again, all that was going through Olivia's mind was _Where is Josh? Why isn't he here? Is he okay?_


	4. Chapter 4

"So, how's it shakin'?" Solomon asked Olivia, interrupting her thoughts.

"Oh, uh, it's 'shakin' ' fine, I guess," she responded.

"Yeah? I like your shirt."

"Thanks."

"What's it mean?"

Looking down at the picture of a leather mask portrayed on her chest, Olivia slightly smiled. "It actually represents the facade of Leatherface. You see, in the movie _Texas Chainsaw Massacre_, he was the intellectually disabled minion who basically butchered the victims into spare parts for barbeque."

Solomon's cocky smirk faded a little. Olivia continued on. "To me, this emblem represents more than just a 'villain.' It signifies the loss of humanity once men turn upon themselves…but also the tragedy of innocent destruction."

Sol gave a slight nod. "Right. Well."

Olivia blushed. "It's stupid."

"No, no, it's not stupid. It's just not really my thing. Josh was always more into the scary movies than we were, ya know?"

Olivia's heart leapt. They had something in common? Besides being horribly shy at the worst possible times? It was a miracle.

Meanwhile, Lauren was chatting it up with Jacob and Derek. Nathan just stood in the back of the group and looked menacingly towards her. Lauren pretended not to notice. "So do you guys wanna hang out with us later on? We could go see a movie, or eat some more."

"I'm ALL for eating more, girl," Jacob said.

Solomon butted into the conversation. "But what if other people *cough* wanna see a movie?"

"Well I'd rather eat!"

"You can eat the nachos or popcorn crap AT the movie!" Sol's voice began to escalate.

Lauren looked over at Olivia. They shared a knowing smile. Lauren…well…to put it nicely, she had a lot of the same frustration issues that Solomon had. Although she never once yelled in a shell museum…

"Guys, guys!" Derek stepped in between the brothers. "We could do dinner AND a movie!"

Both guys nodded. "Sounds good to me too," Nathan chimed in.

They all exchanged spontaneous high-fives. Olivia raised her hand to ask a question, but got it slapped with the others' hands instead. "Um, I was just curious. Where's Josh at?"

"Pfft, whaddya care about that log for?" Sol scoffed. Olivia stuttered. Luckily, Jacob is an absolute sweetheart.

"He's back at our bus, he didn't wanna come," he said, gently putting a hand on her shoulder. His eyes twinkled just a tiny bit. Maybe it was because he was Josh's twin, but it seemed like he could sense Olivia's true concern.

"Oh, okay." She tried to brush it off nonchalantly. Who was she kidding? Even creepy-staring Nathan could see right through her act.

Jacob leaned in a little closer and spoke a little softer. "I'll walk you back to the bus if you want."

She could only open and shut her mouth a few times before finally whispering, "Okay."

He smiled warmly at her. A genuinely friendly smile. He turned to the others. "Hey, me and Olivia are gonna head back to the bus. We'll catch you all later for dinner."

Lauren's eyebrows furrowed as she gave Olivia a questioning look. _What are you doing with HIM?_

Rather than explain what was going on, Olivia decided to have some fun with the situation. She shrugged and winked at Lauren, only causing Lauren's cheeks to flare red.

"Bye, y'all," Jacob waved as he headed out of the museum with Olivia by his side. As soon as she made it outside, she began to laugh. "What's so funny?"

"Lauren is so jealous of me right now," she answered, still chuckling.

"Why is that?"

"Because I'm walking. Alone with you."

"…So…why would that make her jealous…?" The drummer had a real look of confusion on his face.

Olivia laughed harder. "Dude! Are you blind?"

"No."

"She REALLY likes you. I mean REALLY likes you."

Jacob's mouth dropped open. "She DOES?"

"Yep. Did you SEE how she was dancing last night during 'Mamacita'?"

"Well, yeah, but I thought the music moved her booty."

Olivia could not stop laughing. "That too, but she was trying to impress you. She's head over heels for you, man."

"Wow. That is interesting," Jacob said, looking off into the distance as they walked.

Was Olivia sorry that she told him? Nah. If anything, it most likely helped Lauren's chances with him, since the guy obviously didn't have a clue she liked him.

A little while later, they made it to the bus. Danielle was sitting outside, and waved hello to Olivia again. John Varnadoe was with her. "John, this is my friend, Olivia. Olivia, this is Xanadu," Danielle introduced them.

"Nice to meet you," John said, shaking her hand. "The big mopey guy is inside, if that's who you're looking for."

Olivia smiled. Not only did John's speech impediment sound super awesome in person, she WAS looking for the big mopey guy.

Jacob fake-laughed and opened the door. He flipped his bangs out of his face and took Olivia's hand. "Come on in, don't be shy," he said, leading her into the vehicle.

Olivia gingerly walked up the steps. The bus was a lot smaller than she thought it would be. How did 7+ people travel on this thing all the time? With a jolt she realized that this bus actually belonged to Josh himself. Wow.

"The bunks are back here," Jacob called, having gotten ahead of her. She swallowed and headed down the tiny hallway. Jacob was waiting for her outside of Josh's bunk. Danielle and John headed inside to take naps as well.

"HEEEEYYYYYYY!" Jacob yelled as he whipped the curtain back.

The bunk was empty. Danielle and John stood there in shock. Jacob stood there in shock. Olivia stood there in confusion.

"But…he was right here," Danielle finally said. "I checked on him 5 minutes ago, and I was outside the bus the whole time. He didn't come out…"

Only Jacob noticed the tears silently flowing down Olivia's worried face. He pulled her close and embraced her as she cried.


	5. Chapter 5

Thirty minutes later, the others were gathered in and around the bus. Danielle had called Solomon to tell him that Josh was nowhere to be found. Hearing that his little brother had gone missing, he had run all the way back across Miami to the bus. Yes, Sol could be superficial. Yes, Sol could be frustrating. But when it came to his family, almost no one was more loyal.

Jacob was still holding Olivia. Lauren was too distraught by the bassist's disappearance to care. Nathan was pacing. Derek kept making phone calls, although to whom no one was really sure. John just stood with his arms crossed, a frown apparent on his face. Danielle was wringing her hands.

Solomon emerged from the vehicle he spent 80% of his time on. "All right, listen up," he addressed the group. "We've got to split up and look for Josh. He's not the kind of guy who would just wander off without telling anyone."

"I agree," Nathan stopped pacing for a second. "My instincts are honing in on him right now." He looked intently toward the boardwalk.

"NATHAN! STOP BEING SO WEIRD!" Solomon exploded. Everyone looked up in surprise. Solomon and Nathan were best friends. They'd been best friends since college. Perhaps the tension of Josh's unknown location was getting to Sol.

But he wasn't finished. "Smoke signals! Island natives! Ninja kicking, superhero crap, Tron! Instincts? I'm sick of it all! You're 34 YEARS OLD! When are you gonna GROW UP?"

Nathan slowly closed his mouth, which had been hanging open while Sol was ranting. "I…it's just…" He couldn't even put a sentence together.

"Just stop." Solomon's face was stern. Olivia lifted her own tear-stained face from Jacob's chest just in time to witness a solitary tear run down Nathan's face. Her eyes widened. Nathan never cried. Nathan was never sad. Nathan had two settings: deadpan and absolutely insane. This was a side of him that she, or anyone else, for that matter, had never seen before.

Lauren stepped forward. "How could you?" Behind her, Nathan turned his face away from his best friend.

"So yeah, he's a little quirky. So YEAH, he likes a lot of weird things. And so what if he looks at people creepily and they mistake him for a kidnapper? Nathan is AMAZING. He is unique, and loyal, and we all love him. You're his best friend. Why can't you accept him for who he is?" Lauren's face was contorted into a desperate plea.

Nathan turned and looked at her. Lauren moved closer to him and gave him a hug. He closed his eyes and hugged her back. Derek walked over and hugged him as well. Soon everyone but Sol was embracing Nathan.

"We appreciate you, Nathan," Olivia whispered.

Finally Solomon broke the silence. "Look…I'm sick of all these emotional breakdowns. I'm sorry, man. Let's find Josh now."

Nathan smiled up at him and saluted. "Right-o, Captain."

Lauren grinned and hugged him again. "Now THAT'S the Nate we all know and love."

…

Having split up, the group headed into different directions. Lauren and Derek searched the boardwalk, Solomon and Jacob went back into the city, and Nathan, Danielle, and John drove out to the suburbs. Olivia was left by herself, so she decided to check the beach. After all, that's where she had run into him first.

The entire stretch of sand was obviously deserted, but Olivia kept walking anyway. She gazed out onto the ocean and thought back to the night before. Josh had led her out right to this spot, and had tried to tell her something. Now she'd never know what he was going to say.

With a sigh, she turned and walked underneath the section of the boardwalk that jutted out over the beach. An abandoned fishing boat had washed up to the shore. All of her senses seemed overactive in this spot. She could see the waves, smell the air, feel the wind, taste the salt, and hear the seagulls. She even imagined hearing Josh playing his guitar.

Wait. That wasn't her imagination…

She ran towards the rocks where the faint music was apparently coming from. As she rounded the largest boulder, she gasped. There he was, in all his glory. He half-heartedly plucked at the strings, and she could even hear him singing softly to himself. It was like a movie moment.

All of a sudden, she felt a sharp pain in her leg and cried out. Looking down, she saw a small crab scurrying away. She tried to duck back behind the boulder, but it was too late. Josh had both heard and seen her. The music ended. His eyes didn't leave her face.

"I…I'm sorry," she tried. "We just…we were so worried."

Without a word, he set down his bass guitar and got to his feet. Still keeping his gaze intact, he walked right up to her. She felt her heart beat faster.

Managing to look up into his pupils, she watched as his eyes visibly softened. "Don't apologize," he barely said. "I'm…glad you're here."

Olivia finally found her nerve. "Why did you leave? How did you get out here without Danielle knowing? You should've told someone, you left us all and we—"

"I just needed to think. I didn't want to be followed by everyone asking questions. I just needed to be alone for a bit. Well, alone with my baby," he smiled and gestured toward his guitar. "I'm sure you understand."

Olivia slowly nodded. "Yeah, I feel like that too sometimes." The urge to inquire what he was thinking about was very strong, but he had plainly stated that he didn't want to be asked about it. She held her tongue and focused on his eyebrows, since looking into his eyes had become too uncomfortable.

"I guess I'd better call the others and let them know I'm okay, if they're all that worried," he said as he took out his phone. "Whoa, 17 missed calls."

Olivia's eyes strayed back to his guitar lying in the sand. It would've made for a great photograph, a lone instrument propped up against the rocks. Josh turned away as he waited for Solomon to pick up. She looked towards him again and rested her gaze on his back. Even though they were in sunny Miami, he was wearing a fiery-hued plaid flannel shirt with the sleeves rolled up. He had rolled up his shorts' long pant legs to his knees as well. His flip-flops were off, left next to his guitar. She smiled as she watched his toes wriggling in the sand underneath his feet. He obviously enjoyed the feeling of the cold. Just seeing him take pleasure in something as arbitrary as sand made her happy.

After he promised his older brother that he would never sneak off again, Josh flipped his phone shut and faced Olivia again. She flicked her eyes up from his feet back to his face.

He started to giggle, something Olivia had never heard him do before. "I snuck off by climbing out the bathroom window," he confessed.

Her face split as she started to laugh with him. Oh, this felt good.

"I had to step on the toilet seat to open the window," he continued, laughing even harder. "And on the first try, my foot slipped into the bowl."

Olivia was laughing so hard that she couldn't speak. Who was this man? This surely wasn't the moody, lonesome guy most people knew.

The two of them just stood there and laughed like idiots for a few minutes. Once they finally calmed down, Josh sat near the rocks and picked up his guitar once more. "Want to hear a song?" he asked her, still grinning.

"Sure," she said, sitting down next to him. Next thing she knew, she was rolling on the ground laughing again as Josh strummed the tune to "You've Got a Friend in Me" and sang the Toy Story song in his goofiest voice. He got halfway through the chorus until he finally broke down and laughed again.

Olivia wiped tears from her eyes. "You're something else," she said, playfully shoving him.

He couldn't stop smiling. "Oh yeah? You like that?"

"You're very talented, Mr. Olds."

"Well, you have amazing taste, Ms. Brookshire." He winked at her.

Her inner fangirl screamed, fainted, and was rushed to the hospital, but she kept her poker face. "Why thank you."

He gingerly placed his bass on the sand and leaned back against the rocks. It was silent for a few minutes, but not in an awkward way as before. Finally he spoke. "You know why I wanted to be alone?"

"Sure."

"I needed to sort my thoughts."

"That's what I figured." She was confused. He was being just as vague as before.

"I tried to tell you something last night on this beach, but Solomon interrupted me. You remember?"

Olivia's heartbeat sped up again. "Oh yeah."

"I was trying to tell you that there's this girl back in Atlanta. We're sort of…together."

Her heart sank. Still Josh continued on.

"But…coming here, and meeting you, I…I'm not sure if…"

Olivia sat up.

"I'm not sure if me and her will work out."

Olivia swallowed.

"Because…well, because…I'd feel like I was being unfaithful to her, because…"

Olivia began to sweat.

"Because…" Josh turned toward her. "Because…I feel something when I'm with you. Something I haven't felt in forever. I feel…comfortable. I feel like I've known you for years. It's ridiculous, I know," he said, looking out at the sea again, "because I've known you for what, two days? But I can't explain it."

Olivia's mouth was too dry to respond. This couldn't be actually happening. She wasn't actually listening to him say these things. Any second now, she was going to wake up.

"Hang on," he said after a while. He got out his phone again, dialed a number, and held the receiver to his ear. Finally he spoke. "Hey Ami, it's Josh. I just wanted to get a hold of you to talk about something. So forgive me if this is a little jerky, but I just don't think it's going to work out. So feel free to see other guys. 'Cause I'll be seeing other girls," he said, looking at Olivia. She just stared at him.

He shut his phone and put it back into his pocket. Then he smacked his forehead with his hand. "Ugh, I am so stupid! Would you ever even consider being with me?"

Olivia still stared. Trying to gather her frayed wits, she calmly answered. "Yes. Yes, absolutely."

"Really?" His face lit up. Oh, gosh.

"Of course. I've liked you for…sheesh, I don't even know how long."

"Really?"

"Yes. You're amazing. I melt around you."

"Really?"

"JOSH! Just accept my love!" she blurted out. Her cheeks turned scarlet at her outburst. Josh just started to laugh, however. Not a condescending laugh, but one of pure mirth. He was…happy.

"That's…that's great!" he stammered. She was floored. He genuinely cared about her?

As if reading her thoughts, he leaned forward, still smiling. Her heart stopped. She could feel his breath on her face. Just as she heard a wave crash onto the shore, she felt his lips touch hers. OH DEAR.

He lingered there for a second, then slowly drew back and locked eyes with her for the umpteenth time that day. Olivia felt the urge to cry, though she didn't know why. Once again sensing her feelings, he wrapped his muscular arms around her and held her there as the seagulls flew off the beach.

It wasn't a dream.


	6. Chapter 6

Lauren shook her head. "Are you ever gonna tell me what happened?" she asked.

Ever since Josh and Olivia had come back to the bus, Olivia hadn't really said anything to anyone. Lauren had sat there and tried to guess why she was so silent. ("He's a vampire. He's mad at you because you broke his bass. You realized that you don't really like him anymore.") No luck. Olivia was still mute.

"Whatever." Lauren tossed her blonde hair over her shoulder. "If you don't wanna talk, fine. Don't talk. I'll just go get comfy with Josh in the meantime."

Olivia watched Lauren walk away. As soon as she was sure she had left, she smiled. Good luck with that.

…

"I'm telling you, I can't explain it."

Jacob nodded understandingly as his twin told him what had occurred on the beach. Love was a strange thing, didn't he know it. Thanks to his ex-girlfriend Tameka, he had been left with nothing but an empty wallet and a broken heart. But even that was nothing compared to the rejection Josh had experienced when he had proposed to his ex years ago.

Jacob clapped a hand on Josh's back. "Bro, if she makes you happy, just go with it. A connection like that is hard to find."

"But…it's just…I mean, I'm 30 years old. And let's just say that Olivia's not 30. Or close to it."

"Doesn't mean she isn't the one for you," Jake assured him. "Love knows no bounds."

Josh rolled his eyes. "Thanks, Dr. Phil."

"Hey. Respect your elders or they won't respect you. I may just start calling you Robert again," Jacob laughed as he ducked the pillow chucked at him.

…

Out in the TV area of the bus, Lauren was sitting with Solomon on the bench couch. She was amazed at how fast she and Olivia had become friends with their idols. Just yesterday, they had been meager fans. Today, they were like, BFFLs. It was totally awesome.

Nosy as ever, Solomon leaned forward. "So did you find out anything?"

"Nope. She won't talk. It's driving me crazy." Lauren had found yet another similarity between Sol and her: their need to know everyone's business.

Sol grunted disappointedly and sat back. "Josh's lips are sealed too. Hey…you don't think…"

"Think what?"

Sol grinned. "You don't think anything, you know, HAPPENED on the beach, do you?"

"What?"

"Maybe they kissed or something."

Lauren laughed. "Nah, she would've told me immediately if that happened."

…

Left to her own thoughts, Olivia laid alone in Derek's bunk. She stared at the ceiling that was three inches from her nose. Her mind was flooded with feelings, so many that it was confusing. That's why she hadn't told anyone about the beach. It wasn't that she enjoyed torturing Lauren; she just, like Josh, needed time to think.

She heard a soft knock near her head. The curtain was pulled back, and she was looking into the face of Nathan Currin. "Hey," he said.

She nodded her acknowledgement and looked at the ceiling again. Would she ever be able to organize her thoughts? Maybe it was best just to ignore them…

"I brought you some food," he said, handing her a plate. She took it from him and saw that it was 8 or 9 cookies. Realizing how hungry she really was, she stuffed them into her mouth. Nate just smiled as she ate. When she had one cookie remaining, he stood up to go. "I'll just leave you two alone then."

…

Josh fingered his bass guitar as Jacob rambled on and on. He put the instrument down once he realized that he messed with it whenever he felt uncomfortable.

"And that's just how you know, you know?" Josh hadn't even been listening to his brother talking, so he just nodded.

"Look, I know I like her. I might even…"

"You might what?"

Josh looked out the window. "Love…her."

Jacob squealed girlishly. "Awww, that's so cute! I'm so happy for you. I just wanted to share my views on love. I've had more experience with it than you have."

"Would you just stop?" Josh stood up. He also then realized that he acted intimidating whenever he felt cornered or pressured. "Just because you were born 4 minutes earlier doesn't make you my father figure."

"I'm just trying to help."

"Well, you could help by…!" Josh stopped and took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I just…I'm not used to feeling this way."

"What way?"

He thought for a second before answering. "Giddy. Kind of like how you act all the time."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

"Well, Lauren sure seems to like it well enough."

He watched in surprise as Jacob's face turned a bit red. "Yeah, well, that's my business," Jake said, turning away.

Josh raised his eyebrows. "Oh? Have you found your 'soulmate' in Miami too?"

"Just drop it, Josh."

"Oh-ho-ho, so you DO like her!" Josh punched his twin's arm. "You liiike her, you liiike her!"

"Just…I…shut up!" Even Jacob's ears were red.

"Okeydokey. I'll just go stroll out to where she's sitting and act as giddy as you, and see how she reacts then." Josh's grin spread from ear to ear. "I bet she'll love it so much she'll hop right out of her chair and kiss me."

Jacob furiously stepped up into Josh's face. "And I bet YOUR soulmate Olivia would looove that, wouldn't she?"

"She would understand that it was just an experiment."

"Yeah, right. She's crazy about you."

Josh's smile faded a bit. "Is she really?"

Jacob backed down. "You should've seen her when we thought you were lost."

"Hmm." Josh's eyes grew dreamy. "Maybe I should get 'lost' more often."

Jacob smiled. "Separation sharpens love, but togetherness strengthens it."

"Then go be with Lauren. It's okay, I understand. I won't mention it to anyone."

"Thanks, brother. Go be with Olivia."

The two men exchanged a brief hug and left the tiny compartment. Josh headed toward the bunks, while Jake made his way to the TV area.

But before he made it there, Jacob ran back and grabbed an open bag of Cheetos.

…

Blue, white, yellow.

Blue, white, yellow.

Blue, white, yell—

Olivia awoke from her dream. It had been just an array of colors. Did it mean anything? Probably not.

She swung her legs out of the bunk. She must've dozed off after eating the last cookie. It had been delicious.

As her feet touched the floor, the small sliding door at the end of the hall opened. She quickly looked up. It was him.

"Hey. Did I wake you?"

Without saying a word, she stepped forward and hugged him. Caught off guard, he stood there for a second, unsure of how to respond. He had been hurt so many times that it was difficult for him to accept affection easily. But then he remembered that this was THE girl. He embraced her.

After what seemed an eternity, she looked up at him. "Josh."

"Yes?"

"Nothing."

He drew a sharp breath in and couldn't believe what came out of his mouth next. "Olivia, I'm in love with you."

"I've only dreamt of hearing you say that," she whispered.

Cradling her head in his arms, he stroked her hair. "I've only dreamt about meeting someone like you."


	7. Chapter 7

A few days passed, and the group mostly spent the time lounging on the beach. Olivia and Josh had finally made their relationship public, and Jacob had yelled, "I KNEW IT!" and winked at Josh when he had broken the news. As if anyone believed Jacob didn't already know about it.

As for his own personal issues, Jacob still hadn't talked to anyone about how he was feeling, not even Lauren. He decided it'd be better not to mention it, since it would probably only end up as a fling. A week-long hookup. He wasn't looking for short-lived fun. He wanted companionship.

Oh, he hated being so sensitive. He hated being so emotional, so much weaker than the other guys. He hated that he cried. He hated that he loved fashion. He hated a lot of things about himself.

Did he ever tell anyone that he hated how he was? Of course not. If he told a guy, they'd probably punch his arm and tell him to man up. (How he wished he could.) If he told a girl, their face would most likely scrunch up and they'd hug him and tell him how perfect and cute and sweet he was.

He was sick of it all.

He didn't feel like he deserved the girls' adoration. Everywhere he went, they would laugh at his jokes, give him hugs, tell him how amazing the hugs were…it was flattering at first. Then as time went by and he felt more and more secluded, it began to bother him.

Why did he feel this way? Well, why did he enjoy the things he did?

When he was little, he said he wanted to grow up to be a unicorn.

That didn't go over well with anyone. All throughout middle school, even up through his present adult life, he was teased. Not just for the "unicorn" comment, but for a lot of things. People wondered why he became a hairdresser. People wondered why he was always the most stylishly dressed band member. People wondered why he had the persona of a black woman.

He thought that last one was ridiculous. So he swiveled his neck once in a while. He wasn't obsessed with being black like Solomon was.

People wondered, and people began to talk. How many times now had he read a blog somewhere online where they called him gay? How many times had male fans seemed to avoid talking to him? How many times did the girls come up to him and tell him that they "supported" him?

Just thinking about it all made him extremely angry. As he sat on the bus reflecting on his thoughts, he picked up the nearest object and threw it as hard as he could. _The one manly thing I do_, he thought.

The object hit the edge of a counter and smashed into pieces. For a moment, his heart melted and his thoughts cleared. He regretted throwing whatever it was, and now it was ruined. He stood up and walked over to the shrapnel, realizing that he had thrown one of Lauren's prized possessions, a French-themed snow globe given to her by her best friend.

Tears filled his eyes. He had hurt her. She didn't know it was broken yet, but she would soon enough. And she would be hurt. Why couldn't he control himself?

Shaking his head, he snuffled and messily smeared the tears off his cheeks. Real men didn't cry. In fact, regardless of how much he cared about Lauren, he shouldn't care that he broke her snow globe. Right?

That was what Solomon had always told him. "You gotta be tough to make it. You can't waste your time thinking about everyone else all the time."

He grimaced angrily and picked the broken glass off the floor. He went and got a towel, to soak up the water. He pushed the glitter into one pile. Stupid snow globe.

His own brothers had ditched him. They went off to see a movie, and said "someone needs to watch the bus." Well, of course, he was too nice. AGAIN. And now he was stuck on this godforsaken hunk of metal that he hated almost as much as himself.

He kicked the inside of the bus. Not only did his foot now hurt, but there was a dent in the aluminum interior. And he scuffed his combat boot! Man! These were expen—

He stopped his thought short. There he went again. FASHION. Why did he care? Josh threw on a pair of jeans and a shirt every day. Girls fawned over him. So why did he put in so much effort to look nice?

It wasn't for girls. It CERTAINLY wasn't for guys. He wasn't gay, no matter what anyone thought. He wasn't gay.

He wasn't. He couldn't be.

He wasn't.

The amount of times he had to tell himself that sickened him. Tears filled his eyes again, hot and angry this time. Seeing a basket of magazines on the table, he picked it up and flipped it over. The magazines ripped in midair from the force he put into it. Pieces of paper slowly floated down to the floor.

He grabbed them in one fist, scrunching them and ripping them further. He didn't care if they were Nathan's. He didn't care about anything. The tears were spilling onto his cheeks again.

He threw the ruined paper into a trash can and stormed off to the tiny bathroom, slamming the door behind him. Gripping the sink with both hands, he slowly raised his head and looked at himself in the mirror.

Oh, he was a mess.

Bloodshot eyes, tussled hair, tear-stained cheeks, an intense look of desperation on his face.

He couldn't stand to look himself in the eye any more. He screamed in rage and punched his reflection.

Shards of glass fell to the floor, along with blood from his knuckles. He hardly felt it. All he could feel was a white-hot heat growing inside his chest.

Ripping his gaze from the latest mess, he went back out into the common area. He couldn't even explain his anger any more. He wasn't angry about the broken objects around him, the dented wall, the scuffed boot, the hurt body.

He was angry with who he was.

Sinking down into a chair, he finally gave in to loud sobs. The anger was still present, as was the heat, but dimly lit. He suspected the heat and the anger were one and the same.

He couldn't take it. The loneliness was just too much. He couldn't argue with himself any longer. No, he still wasn't gay, but he was emotional. He was sensitive. He was…different. Always had been. Always will be.

No girl could identify with him. There was no such thing as a "soulmate" for him. All the girls who told him how much they looked up to him didn't really know him. They were just fans. They didn't know. Didn't know the half of it.

His mind was complicated. He didn't understand himself. He felt things and said things that he never planned on. What was wrong with him?

His brothers had tried to be supportive. They had told him that he was fine, just a little odd. Just a little awkward.

He lifted his hands and looked at them. One was perfect, the skin soft and smooth. The other was ugly, split and still bleeding. The perfect hand was Lauren. The broken hand was him. Although they had similar makeup to them, they were not the same. Never would be. Never could be.

The tears stopped flowing. His face softened into a deadpan expression. _Never could be_. The words rang through his mind. _Never could be_.

_Never could be_.

He stood and walked to the bathroom.

_Never could be._

He stooped and picked up a piece of glass from the mirror.

_Never could be_.

He closed his eyes. No one was here on the bus with him. It would be hours before they even came back for him.

_Never could be_.

He lay the glass against the wrist of his perfect hand. It felt surprisingly warm, as if inviting him.

_Never could be. Never could be. Never will be._

The next thing he knew, he was sobbing again, huddled on the floor, with Lauren's arms wrapped around him in an embrace that said it all.


	8. Chapter 8

Everyone was now keeping a close eye on Jacob. Lauren had luckily been the first one in the bus after the movie ended, just in time to stop Jake. She would never forget the ghostlike look on Solomon's face when he had walked in and witnessed the traumatic scene. The rest of the night, he just sat alone, head in his hands. She felt bad for him. He was going through a lot of intense emotion on what was supposed to be a vacation.

As a sort of therapy, Lauren decided to let Jacob change her hairstyle. At first, he limply held the scissors in his good hand and stared at her head, uninspired. But after a few snips here and there, and gentle encouragement from her, soon he was whizzing away, chopping off all her hair. He even dyed it a different color.

An hour later, Lauren emerged from the bathroom. "What do you guys think?" she asked the rest, rotating and fluffing her now-short light auburn 'do.

Derek smiled. "It kind of looks like mine! Except not blonde anymore."

"I actually based it off of your hair, and mine," Jacob said proudly. "Funky, yet still feminine."

"It looks great," Olivia chimed in. "You'll have to cut mine sometime."

"OH NO HE DOESN'T," Josh spoke up.

"What?"

"Your hair looks fine."

"Fine is fine, but better is better."

"…What?"

Olivia rolled her eyes. "Never mind. I'll just keep it this way forever and ever and ever and never ever change it."

"Good," Josh smirked and smacked her arm.

"I was being sarcastic!"

"I wasn't."

"You guys sure act like you've been together for years," Nathan complained, never looking away from the video game he was playing on the bus's TV.

"Yay," Josh said. Nathan was now the one to roll his eyes at the bassist.

Lauren sat down next to Derek, Jacob following close behind and taking the seat on her other side. Derek grinned at her, until he noticed the look on her face. She pointed with her eyes to Solomon, still sitting motionless across the room. Derek shrugged. Lauren pointed with her eyes again. Derek looked confused. She leaned in close to him and fiercely whispered, "Talk to him!"

Derek mouthed "Oh" and walked over to the short man. Sol didn't look up as Derek sat down next to him. Derek shot another confused look to Lauren. She just glared at him. Good grief, could he not get a clue?

She walked over and sat down on Solomon's other side, leaving Jacob alone on the couch. Ignoring the hurt looks Jake was shooting at her, she placed a hand on Solomon's shoulder. He still didn't stir.

"Hey. You okay?" she softly asked him. Derek's eyes widened in understanding. He was very caring, but man, he could be clueless sometimes.

Solomon barely moved his head to look at her. "No," he hoarsely whispered.

"You wanna talk about it?"

"Not here. Later."

Lauren gave his back one last rub and headed back over to Jacob's couch. He put his arm around her, but his eyes remained sad. "What's wrong?" she asked him.

"This is all my fault. If I hadn't been so overdramatic, everyone would be enjoying themselves."

"No. Don't talk like that. You didn't mess anything up. We're all just happy you're okay." Lauren looked up into his brown eyes. "Honestly."

He sweetly smiled down at her. For some reason, he could believe what she told him more than anyone else.

In the next chair over, Josh and Olivia had started to hum "And I Love Her" softly to themselves. Olivia was playing with his hands, turning them over and inspecting every inch of them. Josh was chuckling through the song. Apparently she was tickling him a bit.

Solomon finally stood and walked to the bunks, motioning for Lauren to follow him. She gave Jacob a quick peck on the cheek, knowing that he'd be upset at her absence again, then went into the hallway and slid the door shut.

"What's up?" she asked.

"Look at us, Lauren. We're falling apart."

She angrily punched a pillow next to her. "Stop it! All of you, stop it!"

"What are you talking about?"

"You're all being so negative! This is not Family Force 5. This is The World Sucks, Screw My Life Force 5."

Solomon burst out laughing. "Wow."

"Okay, but seriously," Lauren giggled too. "Josh runs off, we all get worried, you explode at Nathan, and Jacob, well, you know. It's too much. I wanna go back to what it used to be like. Remember that first night? The barbeque we had? That was pure, non-problematic fun. Let's be like that again."

Sol sighed. "You're right. Man, you're always right."

"It's about time you recognized it," Lauren smiled.

"So, let's play a show in Miami! A beach show! A free beach show. Just for kicks."

"I like the way you think, Señor Soli."

"Thank you, mamacita."

…

The rest of the group was ecstatic about the beach show idea, except for John. ("I hope you do realize 'free' means no money.") All the next day, Olivia and Lauren worked on flyers to hand out. Danielle staked out a spot to set up a mock stage. The Olds brothers contacted the local radio stations for promotion. Derek and Nathan decided on a setlist. Josh stood around with his arms crossed, explaining the meaning of "free" to everyone. Everything was going smoothly.

"We need a name for this show," Derek brought up.

Lauren thought for a moment about the purpose of the show. "How about 'Music Heals'?" she suggested.

"That's stupid," Solomon said.

"Yep, Sol's back to his old self," Olivia laughed.

"Good 'ol Mr. High-and-Mighty," Josh said.

"Bow before him."

"Kiss the ground where he walks."

"Throw flowers at him."

"Wipe his rear end for him."

The two continued on like this until Nathan finally said, "Alright! Enough. Sheesh, now it's like you've been MARRIED for years."

"Thank you for that suggestion, Nathan." Josh winked at him. Olivia's eyes grew wide. Josh winked at her too. Then, for good measure, he walked up to everyone else and winked at them.

Lauren couldn't stop laughing. "Glad to see you're in a good mood, Bobby."

His smile dropped. "Don't call me that."

"What's the matter, Robert?" Jacob decided to join in.

"Rob, Bob, Corn-on-the-Cob!" Nathan started dancing around Josh. Everyone fell over laughing. Even Josh couldn't help smiling.

"Alright, that's enough," he said through his grin.

Lauren moseyed on over to Solomon and elbowed him. "See? This is what I was talking about. The camaraderie is awesome when everyone's happy."

"Just rub it in, Ms. Perfect," Sol said, turning his face away, but not fast enough for Lauren to miss the smile on his own face.


	9. Chapter 9

10…

The torches were lit.

9…

The flyers were passed around.

8…

The sun was setting.

7…

The men were ready.

6…

The crowd was clapping.

5…

The mood was palpable.

4…

The instruments were tuned.

3…

John still wasn't happy about it being free.

2…

There were glimmers in everyone's eyes.

1…

Here we go.

Unlike the explosive introductory song that began a typical Family Force 5 concert, the acoustic string-plucking started off softly. The crowd hushed and practically leaned forward in anticipation. This was different from any FF5 song they had ever heard.

Olivia looked over at Danielle in confusion, who then motioned her over. "It's a new song the boys have been working on," she told Olivia. "You should hear the non-acoustic version. It's similar, but even better."

"What's it called?" Olivia asked.

"'You Light Up My Life'," she answered.

Olivia focused on the performance. Solomon was singing softly, and Jacob was quietly doing harmony.

"It's funny how you think you'll always be alone, but then somebody finds you and makes you feel at home," Sol sang. "I know I haven't known you for years or even days, but I know we'll be together 'cause you make me feel this way."

Jacob stepped in with a solo. "I just have to tell you how much you mean to me, you opened up my eyes and you helped me to see…"

All three brothers sang melody and harmony for the chorus. "Oh, I really think that I love you. Oh, I really think you're the one. You help me through each day, and every by and by. And I just wanted to say…you light up my life."

The song continued, but Olivia had stopped listening. The bassist had locked eyes with her during the chorus, and gestured to her for every "you".

This song was written by _him_…for _her_.

It was almost too much to handle. No one had ever written her a song before.

She felt tears well up in her eyes as she smiled at him.

He was so perfect.

…

The show had gone off without a hitch. The crowd had loved the new song, and by the last chorus, had even sung along. Of course, they had played more than one song. Fan favorites were twanged out as well. After the entire concert was finished, Josh had walked up to Olivia and embraced her. No words. Just love.

Half an hour later, they were still tangled up in one another's arms. Jacob sat across from them in a beach chair, resting his chin in his hand. He just smiled at the happy couple. He had never seen Josh this way, and it made him happy to see his twin finally satisfied. He had also never seen Josh contribute so much to a song's lyrics. Or tune. Or beat. Or—

Heck, Josh had written the WHOLE song.

But that was totally cool with Jake. He knew it was for Olivia, and although Solomon had originally challenged Josh on his place…("I'm pretty sure I'M the singer…")…eventually they had just let him take control over the process.

And he had to admit, his song was really good. So much meaning behind it.

Not as crunk as their other tunes, but hey. Sometimes a slow song was what a band needed.

Jacob looked back over to his brother and his girl. Olivia's eyes were closed, and she was breathing softly and systematically. Awww. She had fallen asleep in the log's arms.

"So adorable," Jake murmured to himself. He smiled again.

…

Back on the bus, Solomon sat alone in the living room area. Going through the song-writing process always inspired him to write more than one song. And since he really didn't have much say on the last one they had composed, he was in the mood to crank out another.

What should he write about…?

Dancing? Nah.

Partying? Nope.

Love? No.

He crumpled up another piece of paper and threw it into the trash can. "Score," he mumbled.

He had nothing to go off of. C'mon, think, think…He tapped his head with his pencil. Usually he figured out a cool beat on his laptop first, but he wanted to write lyrics today.

DING.

It came to him.

Grinning like he was 14 again, he began to furiously scrawl words on his paper.

…

Later that night, Olivia and Lauren returned to the hotel room they were paying way too much for, considering the amount of time they actually spent in it. They collapsed onto their beds, happy as could be. Lauren broke the silence.

"What a show."

Olivia threw a pillow at her and giggled. "WHOA! What was that for?" Lauren stood up, hands on her hips.

"You're just…I just felt like it," she laughed.

Lauren felt the Solomon in her rising. "Well dude, seriously. No need to chuck things at me." She remembered how a few nights ago Jacob had told her, crying, that he had thrown and destroyed her snow globe. "I just got so angry and I chucked it," he had said. Of course, she had only stroked his short black hair and told him that the globe didn't matter, what mattered was that he was okay.

She snapped back to the present. "1, 2, 3, 4, I declare a pillow war!" she yelled, grabbing her own pillow and tossing it at Olivia.

BAM! It hit her in the face. Lauren guffawed. "Hahahaha, right in the Josh-kisser!" she whooped.

Normally Olivia would've narrowed her eyes at this punchy statement. But she was still on a high from the concert. "You know it!" she called back, dodging another pillow and throwing a T-shirt at Lauren.

"HEY! THAT'S MY FAVORITE SHIRT!" she yelled.

"Geez, calm down, 'Solomon,' " Olivia couldn't stop laughing. "It's just a shirt."

"Well in that case…" Lauren threw a shoe at Olivia. It bounced off her back.

"OW! THAT HURT!"

"Don't throw my clothes then!"

"Clothes are soft, stupidhead! Sheesh!"

Lauren started laughing. "C'mere, you sappy-dap," she said as she lunged forward and hugged Olivia. "We are such lunatics."

"It's 'cause we're in love," Olivia said as she hugged Lauren back. "Not with each other…I mean…uh…"

"Shut up. I know what you meant." Lauren stuck her tongue out. "What do you wanna do now?"

"I dunno. Watch a movie?"

"We could…or…" Lauren revealed a home-burnt CD. "We could listen to YOUR SONG all night long and reminisce!"

"LEMME AT IT."


End file.
